Old Gods

Chapter 9: Interlude

Rating: R

Disclaimer: The characters of Mummies Alive! are properties of DIC entertainment, the gods of war are mine.

Sorry it took so long on this, I got stuck on this chapter and school had taken precedence at the time (it couldn't be helped).

          It was late in the evening, dusk was settling its gray cloak over the city, when Amanda leaned back in her chair and stretched, yawning hugely in her exhaustion.  She should be used to these long days by now but she wasn't and as she got older, the days felt like they lengthened but still never gave her enough time to get everything done.

          Strange how time worked out like that.

          She locked her office and walked down the hallways, fumbling in her purse for her car keys to leave but stopping in front of the Egyptian exhibit when she decided to pay a visit to her son's 'guardians.' 

          They fascinated her and even frightened her at times, with their anachronistic ways and strange habits, not to mention their outward appearances, how their blue skin, yellowed bandages, and ornamental garments made them look almost demonic, but they had so far proven themselves to be virtuous individuals.  When Presley first took her to meet them, she was unbelieving that they could exist but those feelings quickly changed to shocked, irrevocable acceptance that sent her crashing to the floor.

          Even five days later she was still having trouble making her scientific mind fathom that magick existed and that it's brought four mummies back to life when, by all rights, they should never been able to be revived at all no matter what was done to them.  As odd as it sounds, she was having no problems believing and accepting the guardians for what they appeared to be.  They had proven themselves to be kind, rather polite, amusing at times, but they were inherently good people and cared deeply for Presley, openly willing to sacrifice themselves for him. 

          Not that she had anything against the three men she had gotten a chance to meet and speak with or the three more normal-looking men once she recovered from her fainting spell.  They were all very nice men, very polite to her but their conversations had always seemed strained, unfocused, distracted by a pervasive worry even she was not immune to.  She knew their worry, had felt it herself every time her son was overly late or came home injured and had felt it when she was first told by Presley that one of his 'guardians' had been viciously beaten and had felt it even more strongly when she saw the young girl lying unconscious on a cot.

          When she first walked into that darkened chamber and saw her still body a strong mother instinct came rushing to the fore.  It was to be expected she supposed, any mother would feel protective of an injured child and the girl was only a year or two older than her son.

          It was a happier atmosphere she walked in to than any she had witnessed these past few days.  She wondered at the change in temperament. 

          Until, that is, she entered fully into the sitting room and saw the small, white-haired figure of the one guardian she had not spoken with sitting on the stone slab they called a couch, talking warmly with Zarg, Moranhk, and, surprising to her, Presley while Jakal sat quietly beside the girl. 

          She was awake, that certainly explained why her son was here instead of home doing his homework like he was supposed to be.

          "Hey, Mom." Presley had noticed her in the doorway and smiled sheepishly at being caught here instead of home.

          The other men greeted her casually, having become fairly use to her over the days she had been showing up here or they at her home, office, or anywhere Presley was.  Nefertina simply looked startled that she was here, though that was understandable; the girl had been sleeping for the past several days.

          "Hello boys," she smiled. "Hello, Nefertina, are you feeling better?"

          Nefertina blinked in confusion, "Um… a little, yes."  She passed an imploring look at Jakal and then at Presley.  It was obvious she didn't remember waking up when Amanda was there with her.

          "I told her," Presley said quietly, "don't worry."

          Moranhk stood, towering over them, a true giant of a man, and left the room after excusing himself.  Because of his sheer size and general silence, he was the one that made her most uneasy when she first met him and he still did on occasion, being hard to get to know.  But then it had only been five days; she was still getting to know all of them.

          "So… what brings you down here, Mom?"

          "I was curious how everyone was doing.  Now, I'm glad I did pop in, it would have been quite a shock to go home and not find you there doing your homework."  She folded her arms and arched an eyebrow at him, pleased that he at least had the decency to look sheepish.

          Unable to help it, Jakal smiled at the prince's chagrined expression, finding it amusing to see it used on other people and knowing all too well a plaintive whine was going to come.

          "Aww, Mom."

          He knew it.  He had heard something similar several times over the years, directed at both himself and the other guardians.  It was a habit the fourteen-year-old had yet to grow out of, but was one of the characteristics that could be endearing if not taken to the extreme where it simply became annoying.

          Smiling slightly at the familiar discussion between the prince and his mother, Jakal pulled his love closer against his side, reveling in the warm smile she bestowed upon him.  With her bruises almost faded completely, she was looking more her normal, beautiful self but there were still remnants of pain deep in her stormy eyes that kept her more subdued than he had ever seen and he didn't like it.  He hated seeing her like this, fearing every shadow as if it held her tormenter, afraid to face her friends because of her tears. 

          And Khalset is still out there… probably licking his wounds in Scarab's hideout until they come at us again.  I should have made sure he was dead, I should have made sure that arrow had gone straight through his blackened heart.

          Nefertina is still in danger, so is the prince… he pulled her closer in an unconscious embrace of protectiveness.

          The hunter promised himself he would protect his newfound love form anymore harm, from anyone who sought to harm her ever again.  It was a promise unconsciously made on the rain-drenched cliff that fateful night, one he meant to uphold as strongly as his oath to the prince.

End chapter 9.

Possibly one of the shortest chapters I've written but it was also one of the most halting ones as well. But I hoped it tides you over until the next, which has no set date for posting and is hardly even written yet.